Royal Posturing
by S.J. Kohl
Summary: Günter's obsessed with Yuri, and Gwendal doesn't like it.  GwendalxGünter


Royal Posturing  
By S.J. Kohl

Rating: PG  
Pairing: Gwendal/Günter  
Summary: Günter is obsessed with His Majesty, and Gwendal doesn't like it.  
Disclaimer: I don't own Kyo Kara Maoh or Kyou Kara Maou or, well, basically I don't own this fandom, any way you choose to spell it…

A/N: Written for toytoy77, the only person who would ever dare request Gwendal/ Günter fic of me. —glare—

A/N #2: Set _before _Gwendal and Yuri end up handcuffed to one another and Gwendal starts to respect Yuri a little. Also, as far as I know, these particular laws don't exist in the world of Kyo Kara Maoh, so…you know…it's fiction.

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"Highness!" The high, almost panicked voice was unmistakable. _Günter_. Gwendal pinched the bridge of his nose in expectation of the headache he would inevitably face as Günter von Christ drew inevitably closer to his office. He was going to come in, Gwendal just knew it.

"Highness!" Günter's voice sounded again, closer to the door this time. "At least let me draw you a bath!"

"I don't need a bath, Günter! It's just a little bit of dirt." Yuri's voice this time, harried and clearly annoyed. Gwendal wondered why Günter didn't just give up chasing after the brat. It wasn't like Yuri ever granted him any consideration or had any notion of politeness or propriety. But it didn't matter what Yuri did, skipping back and forth from this world to the other without a thought in his head as to whether his country needed him or not. No, no matter what Yuri did, Günter always followed him around like a lovesick puppy. And not even a cute one. It was pathetically infuriating.

"But…" The desperation in Günter's voice was unmistakable, even through the thick wood of the door and several feet of hallway. "Your Majesty is not presentable in this state. I would be perfectly happy to draw your bath for you, should you only wish it."

"No! Günter, just…I have to go see Conrad!"

Gwendal pulled the next report to the front of the desk and bent low over it, scanning it almost absently. It hadn't always been like this. Günter had been strong, and he still was when he chose to show it. He'd always been quiet about his skill with the sword, but he'd never been _simpering _before that brat of a half-demon want-to-be king showed up. But now…now Günter lived, breathed, and slept His Highness Yuri Shibuya, twenty-seventh king of the Great Demon Kingdom. Gwendal sighed and leaned back in his chair. _Three, two, one…_

Sure enough, the door opened slowly, dejectedly, and Günter von Christ poured himself into the room, closing the door behind him and leaning against it.

Gwendal glared.

Günter cleared his throat. "I don't suppose you would mind if…"

"I most certainly _do _mind. I'm busy, Günter, and I don't need you hanging around in my office."

Günter's eyes grew dark, the hurt in them clearly evident. "But…"

"Why do you let him do this to you?"

Günter stood up and straightened his shoulders, brushing invisible dust from his robes. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Gwendal growled. "He's a kid, Günter. He's hardly hit puberty. He barely understands how to wipe his nose on his own. How's he supposed to understand all your High Court propositions and royal posturing?"

Günter practically sputtered, and Gwendal almost—almost—felt ashamed. Günter was his elder, and he was a warrior and politician worthy of Gwendal's respect, no matter his idiotic actions of late. But Gwendal didn't care. He was sick of this. He remembered too well how he'd looked at Günter when he'd been a young man. He had admired the older man, and why not? Günter had been an amazing warrior, a strong defender of the Demon Kingdom, and a true leader. He still was. His people loved him; they were prosperous and well-cared for, and the entire kingdom would be in a state of perpetual chaos were it not for Günter's organizing efforts. It was practically illness-inducing to watch this strong, soft-spoken man who Gwendal had always loved and admired scrape and bow for a half-witted lordling who didn't know one end of a sword from the other. Even so, he could have, perhaps, been a bit more tactful. "Sorry, Günter. I overstepped myself."

"No," Günter shook his head. "Your Lordship is correct. My situation is indeed a hopeless one."

"What is it about him that has you so fascinated?"

A queer light shone from behind Günter's eyes and he leaned forward slightly. "His Highness is virtuous and kind and honorable. He is gentle, a pacifist who seeks solutions with words rather than blades. I can tell even now that, one day, he will be the man every ruler should aspire to be."

Gwendal leaned forward as well, his eyes narrowed in irritation. "I'm virtuous, honorable, and even kind when I want to be and my company deserves it. I've always sought to keep our nation out of war, and many people have held me up as a great leader over the years. What makes me any different from him?"

Günter blinked. "Y-your Lordship?"

"Why does it have to be him?" Gwendal slammed his fist down on the table. "He's a kid, Günter! He's not old enough for love or marriage or maturity, and even if he was, he's already engaged to my brat of a baby brother!"

Günter took a few steps forward, away from the door. "What is it Your Lordship is asking, exactly?"

"What I'm asking, _Your Excellency, _is why it has to be _him? _What makes him special? I was a kid, too, you know. I was kind and honorable and all of that, and I was practically ruling this nation as well. But you never looked at me the way you look at him! If you had…" Gwendal bit the words off before he spoke them, cursing himself for not guarding his speech more closely.

Günter moved forward again, stopping only when he stood just before the great wooden desk. He leaned down, his face close to Gwendal's. "If you had…"

Gwendal snorted. He didn't answer.

Silence knitted itself tightly between them, becoming tense and strained. Finally, Günter cleared his throat. "Since you asked, I suppose I should give you an honest answer. The relationship between His Highness and myself is one of service and devotion. I love him, as I would any ruler with the potential for good that His Majesty carries. As for those actions you find inappropriate…" Günter shrugged. "His Highness is a safe target for such things. Courtly Love. Undying affection projected onto a man or woman who can and will respond only in the most innocent of ways. You see, some people need a focus to divert their attention from the true objection of their affections, if that object happens to be beyond their reach."

Gwendal's mind quickly flicked over the shelves upon shelves of knitted plush toys that adorned the walls of his rooms. He swallowed thickly. "And the…the true…object of your affection is…"

"A grown man now. In the beginning, however, he was a prince, a person well above my own station. More importantly, he was a boy I was charged with protecting and nurturing, a boy I was forbidden, by law, to approach in a romantic fashion. I could not court him, though every day I spent with him, I wished to court him more."

"Ah." It was Gwendal who cleared his throat this time. "And Yuri…"

"Is engaged to Lord Wolfram von Bielefelt and therefore a safe target for my honest devotion. Even were he to interpret any of my actions as those of a romantic nature, he would be unable to respond, and I am safe from any legal or moral ramifications as I am focusing my attentions on an unavailable subject."

"So…you're using Yuri as a distraction from…me?"

Slowly, Günter nodded.

Gwendal frowned and resisted the urge to slam his fist down against the surface of the desk a second time. "You idiot. It's not like I'm a child anymore."

Günter raised an eyebrow. "Surely Your Lordship is familiar with the law in a situation such as this."

Gwendal sat in confused silence for a moment. Of course he knew the law. He knew _all _the laws. And the law clearly stated that… He blinked. The law clearly stated that any person assigned to the position of guardian or protector to a child held that title, and a relationship comparable to that of parent, until the child himself rescinded the guardianship at the onset of adulthood. Only, Gwendal had never held a formal renouncement. So many things had been going on…his uncle's plotting, the war with the human nations… He'd forgotten all about it. Günter was, legally, still his protector. Gwendal blushed. He leaned back again. Then he leaned forward and captured Günter's lips in a quick, experimental kiss.

Günter smiled and leaned in closer.

Gwendal almost whimpered as he tangled his fingers in the long fall of Günter's hair. They could hold the renouncement later.


End file.
